Coping Skills for Relapse Prevention

Few things will derail your recovery faster than triggers that you don’t know how to handle. Besides that, remember that addiction’s a chronic disease. Therefore, there’s the chance of relapse. That said, you can better your odds of staying sober with coping skills for relapse prevention.

Detox and Rehab Don’t Guarantee Lifelong Sobriety

Few people like to talk about relapse. However, it’s a topic that you need to address. Some people graduate from a rehab facility and go on to enjoy lifelong sobriety. Others find that somewhere down the line they struggle with stressors and triggers.

Due to the chronic nature of the disease, relapse is possible. It doesn’t mean that rehab didn’t work. Moreover, it’s not a sign of failure or moral weakness. It’s merely a temporary hiccup that you can overcome through coping skills for relapse prevention.

Relapse typically happens when life presents you with a perfect storm. For example, you’re hungry, which leaves you more susceptible to irritability. You act on the anger, which creates conflict. This trigger might cause you to consider using again if a drug was a crutch during an interpersonal conflict.

At a rehab center, therapists help you develop coping skills for relapse prevention. Meditation is a practice that lets you pause before reacting. When you take care of the hunger and then revisit the interaction, your actions may be different. As a result, it’s possible to diffuse triggers and develop coping skills for relapse prevention.

Other triggers include boredom, loneliness, and work-related stresses. Therapists work with you to find solutions for these situations. Moreover, you may experience them at the facility in the form of role-playing. Proactive approaches include recreational therapies and yoga instruction, which let you learn new, healthy hobbies.

Avoid Environmental Triggers

Sometimes, a relapse has to do with a false sense of security. Through coping skills for relapse prevention, you can begin to overcome these beliefs. During individual counseling before graduation from a program, you talk through possible triggers. For example, going to a bar after discharge is a bad idea when you struggled with an alcohol use disorder. Just being in the place or smelling the drinks can be enough to derail your sobriety.

Other possible environmental triggers are the people that you used to do drugs with. Although you feel strong now, negative peer pressure can easily cause you to use again. A better coping skill would be the search for a new circle of sober friends.

Learn more about coping skills for relapse prevention today. At Crest View Recovery Center, therapists routinely work with people who are ready to quit using. Don’t let addiction rob you of another day. Therefore, call 866-327-2505 now.